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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25778281">what i could've done</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/kyufics/pseuds/kyufics'>kyufics</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>TREASURE (Korea Band)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - High School, Angst, M/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 07:27:09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,212</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25778281</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/kyufics/pseuds/kyufics</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>junkyu remembers everything.<br/>how they met, how they got together, their first kiss. all of it; especially where he went wrong.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Kim Junkyu/Takata Mashiho</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>22</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. 001</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>this is my first fic, and i know it's a mess. i don't think it's ao3 worthy, but it's trying it out. just bare with me please lol</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>BEEP BEEP BEEP</em>
</p><p>The blaring of Junkyu's alarm woke him from his sleep. He hadn't been getting much sleep recently, and any that he did get was rather unpleasant, so being taken from that wasn't really too much of a loss.</p><p>However, this did cause his first migraine of the day. It was a constant thing, the migraines. It was routine for Junkyu at this point. A migraine on a good day would only last a couple of hours and wear off towards the better end of the day. But, if things were really bad, sometimes he couldn't even go to school. It's just how it was.</p><p>Junkyu had these migraines as long as he could remember. His parents say it's from his lack of sleep and abnormal eating habits. Junkyu <em>knows </em>it's more than that. Just like he feels the migraines have always been a part of him, they've also always been a part of his mother. He had gotten this awful burden from birth and it escalated from his bad habits and an unfortunate amount of stress. Although he knows he can't blame his mother, he just wishes that for one day he could wake up without his first feeling being pain. Every morning he has to sit through it, and then stand up and do it all again. It made him dizzy and weak, which typically lasts almost all day. It's too much for him.</p><p>After the initial punch in the face from the migraine begins to become a background thought, Junkyu swings his legs over the side of the bed and stands up. He's careful to not get up too fast, for the sake of his head, but the shock of standing up is inevitable and the pain skyrockets. His hands fly up to his head and he holds them there while his face contorts from the pain, wishing it would just stop.</p><p><em>It's getting worse</em>, he thinks.</p><p>When Junkyu can finally confidently move around properly, he heads over to his nightstand to grab his phone and get some clothes from his dresser. He then heads to the bathroom to get ready, but is greeted by an unpleasant image in the mirror.</p><p>A disaster. His hair is unbelievably messy and, quite frankly, dirty. The heavy bags under his eyes are unparalleled. "Jesus Christ..." Junkyu says to himself and looks at his reflection in disgust. <em>Has it really gotten that bad?</em> he thinks.</p><p>Taking him out of his thoughts, his phone began to ring. He sighs and looks to see who's calling.</p><p>
  <em>Hyunsuk</em>
</p><p>Junkyu rolls his eyes and picks up the phone, preparing himself for the inevitable abuse to his head. <em>What could that idiot need this early in the morning?  </em>His finger hovers over the accept call button before fully committing and tapping it aggressively and bringing the phone to his ear.</p><p>"Hyunsuk what on Earth could you possibly need this earl-" He is immediately cut off by the boy yelling at him through the phone. Junkyu pulls the phone away from his ear, hoping Hyunsuk will just calm down if he doesn't say anything. Only then does he hear what his older friend is saying.</p><p>"-promised me last week! I can't believe you couldn't remember this one thing! It's extremely important to Yedam and you <em>know</em> that! Is it really that hard to walk out the door?" Hyunsuk finishes. He's breathing heavily and only then does Junkyu remember. <em>Shit. </em>Today was the day the exchange students were coming.</p><p>Usually, Junkyu wouldn't give a shit about something like this, but Yedam was a part of the student council and wanted his friends to be there (more he needed to get a certain amount of people to come or he would get kicked out). The exchange students were coming from some arts school in Japan and had a showcase before classes started today. When it was first announced, Junkyu immediately had no interest. Going to school early? Jumpstart the headache? No thanks.</p><p>But, Hyunsuk convinced him to do it for Yedam. Yedam was the caretaker of the group, he always made sure his friends were doing well. He cared for them a lot. Junkyu didn't want to be <em>that friend</em>, so he agreed. Hyunsuk promised to never make him do anything like it ever again, so he thought he could risk his precious sleep for it. That was until the current situation. Not ready, pain, and an angry Hyunsuk outside of his house.</p><p>He takes a deep breath before trying to explain himself. "God Hyunsuk, I'm really sorry and I know I was supposed to be ready for this and I <em>wasn't. </em>I know<em>. </em> But I would expect <em>you</em> of all people to understand and not scream at me this early in the morning," Junkyu hadn't meant for it to come out so harsh, and he immediately regretted it, but Hyunsuk knew better than anyone about his situation. </p><p>"Yeah, yeah I know. I'm sorry," Hyunsuk's tone is much calmer, "I just really want us to be there for Yedam," he says quieter. </p><p>Junkyu sighs, "I know, and that's completely valid. Sorry for being so harsh, and sorry for being late-" His emotional testament was quickly cut off. They weren't the type of friends to get into that. </p><p>"But, that doesn't mean I'm not still mad at you for not being ready. Hurry your ass up."</p><p> </p><p>--</p><p> </p><p>Junkyu was ready and in Hyunsuk's car before the other had more of a reason to shout at him. They'd gotten to school at 7:25. The assembly started at 7:30.</p><p>"Junkyu, if we don't make it in, you owe me," Hyunsuk says playfully, but there was some sort of truth to the statement. They quite literally need to run in make it in time, and running in the school uniform was <em>not</em> ideal. But it's what they had to do.</p><p>They both looked at each other and nodded, silently agreeing on a race inside. Both boys took off immediately, laughing and throwing out insults to make the other stop running. Hyunsuk was clearly faster, but Junkyu could tell he was slowing himself down as to not leave him behind. Making it to the doors of the school, Junkyu swung one open and they booked it down the empty halls, heading for the auditorium. </p><p>The lack of students in the hallway was alarming, both boys were internally screaming, but didn't want to express it. Finally, they made it to the entrance of the auditorium. They made it.</p><p>Junkyu and Hyunsuk looked at each other, out of breath and uniforms messy. There was a surprising amount of students attending, considering the assembly was before school and also <em>not</em> mandatory. When they walked in, 4 pairs of hands were waving furiously at them to come over and sit down. It was Doyoung, Jihoon, and Yoonbin, so headed towards them and seats they had saved for the pair.</p><p>"Where were you guys?" Jihoon asked immediately.</p><p>"Well, this idiot over here was barely awake when I pulled up to his house," Hyunsuk pointed to Junkyu. He held his hands up in defense.</p><p>"Hey, I'm not used to coming to school an hour early," They weren't convinced. "Anyway, where are Seunghun and Byounggon?" Junkyu asked inquisitively, "I thought they were coming too?"</p><p>"I think they're getting a tour of that university they both applied to. They really want to go together," Doyoung explained.</p><p>Junkyu nodded, and sat back in his seat. This was his only chance to relax in preparation for the next hour of headache-inducing performances. He wasn't saying the people were bad, but any noise over speakers this big were bound to give him some extra head pounding. Of course, these precious seconds of relaxation was cut short. Suddenly, the room flooded with darkness, which, as always, was filled by the people who scream when the lights are turned off. He would never understand that type of person.</p><p>The lights dimming was followed by someone tapping a microphone to test it. This tapping resulted in some very unpleasant feedback coming from the speakers, which was even more unpleasant in Junkyu's situation. Spotlights turned to the stage, and it was their principal at the stand. </p><p>"..um sorry. Anyway. Hello students! As you all should know, students from Yokohama International School will be joining us for the rest of this year and all of next year," The principal paused, hoping for some sort of reaction from the crowd. It was dead. In their defense, it was way too early to be excited at about anything, let alone a school assembly. He sighed quietly.</p><p>"Well, some of these students got together and planned a performance for us as an introduction! I understand that being at school this early on a Friday isn't ideal, but we ask that you please be respectful during their performances because they have come far and practiced hard. Please, give it up for Yokohama International! This first performance is Day6's I Wait by Shiroiwa Ruki, Kono Junki, Sato Keigo, Kawanishi Takumi, and Kimata Syoya!" </p><p>Everyone clapped, and some people cheered, but it was short-lived and back to quiet pretty quickly. The principal walked off stage, and the curtains closed. Shuffling could be heard coming from the stage, presumably the first act setting up. When things began to quiet down, everyone was looking around, anticipating the first performance.</p><p>The curtains began to open and there was a 5 member band in front of them. Junkyu sighed, he didn't doubt their talent, but drums this early? This was going to be a long ride for his poor head. <br/>
<br/>
The first performance was a rearranged cover of Day6's I Wait. It was the Japanese version, but they changed the song to be much calmer and almost like a lullaby. Junkyu silently thanked them for the soothing start, because he knew it was only going to get louder from there. <br/>
<br/>
As the performance slowly came to an end, the crowd began to wake up from the trance they'd been put under and clapped enthusiastically. It was really a great performance, and it surely set a high standard for all of the other performances.</p><p>The next 50 minutes were comprised of various piano performances, lots of singing, a few more bands, various funny skits, and of course, covers of songs. Junkyu wished he could pay more attention but his lingering headache wouldn't let him, even when he tried to force himself to give 100% into it. He felt bad, knowing everyone coming up on stage was <em>no doubt</em> super talented, and wanted to give them proper recognition. The best he could do was clap after every performance.</p><p>After the 5th piano performance of the hour, the principal came back on stage to announce the next group, "Well done, girls. Now, for the last performance of today! Is everyone ready?" </p><p><em>Last performance already?</em> Junkyu thought. <em>I've really been out of it.</em> </p><p>"Lastly, we have Okamoto Kotaro, Kanemoto Yoshinori, Takata Mashiho, Hidaka Mahiro, Terazono Keita, Hanada Asahi, and Watanabe Haruto performing a cover of Killing Me by IKON!"</p><p>That got Junkyu interested. <em>What kind of cover was it?</em> Again, their principal exited and curtains closed. The anticipation was <em>unreal</em>. The whole auditorium was tense, most likely because everyone knew they could leave soon. After the shuffling behind the curtains quieted down, Junkyu was already on the edge of his seat. </p><p>As the curtain began to open, there were 7 boys and... no instruments? <em>Are they dancing?</em>  He asked himself. Squinting, he could see the boy in the middle had a microphone in their hand. <em>Singing live </em>and<em> dancing?</em> It wasn't uncommon, but no one so far had danced today, and to introduce yourself to a new school like that? It was ballsy. </p><p>The first few notes of the song played, signaling the dancing to start. When the first boy started singing, Junkyu was immediately hooked. Every time he sang, Junkyu was waiting for more. Everything about him drew him in. He couldn't take his eyes off the boy the entire performance. He was hypnotized. Unlike the other performances, it was over in a flash, leaving Junkyu in the audience starstruck.</p><p>
  <em>Who is he?</em>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. 002</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Junkyu's first period was hell. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Everyone</span>
  </em>
  <span> was talking about the boys from the last performance. He felt like his head was going to explode. It's not like he didn't appreciate the performance, he was practically drooling over the boy he saw when the performances were over. Hyunsuk has to shake him to bring him back to reality. But, the constant chatter was, as always, never a help to his incessant headache. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>So, when it came time to switch classes, Junkyu was sprinting down the hall to get at least 30 seconds of peace and quiet before the chatter took over. He stepped into the classroom, and to his relief, only 2 people were there: their teacher, Kr. Kwon and Yedam. The two were talking, so Junkyu opted to just wave to Yedam and sit down. As more people started filing in, his disappointment became more obvious. Again, the only topic of conversation was the final performance.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"They were sooo talented!!"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Do you think he'd be interested in me?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Oh, but the rapper! His voice was just so- </span>
  <em>
    <span>Ugh</span>
  </em>
  <span>!"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Junkyu was sick of it. When the final bell rang, it was like music to his ears. Yedam and Mr. Kwon ended their conversation, and Yedam headed for Junkyu to sit down next to him. A few of the girls in the front of the class were still chatting about the boys.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Well, I liked the guy who started in the middle! He was so cute, but he could really dance..." One girl said dreamily. Mr. Kwon stood up and stared at them, not in a nice way. More in a teach-waiting-for-class-to-quiet-down way.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It did nothing, they were oblivious.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>What did shut them up, however, was the boy they were talking to stepping into the classroom awkwardly. There was no doubt he heard he was being talked about and had been debating coming into the classroom. He wouldn't intentionally be late on his </span>
  <em>
    <span>first day</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wait.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>What?</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>It was him.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>It didn't even register with Junkyu when the boy stepped into the class. His brain was going completely blank. Yedam looked over at him, confused. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>What's wrong with you</span>
  </em>
  <span>?" He mouthed to Junkyu. No response. Junkyu had forgotten how to register any thoughts.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Mr. Kwon quickly changed his stance when the boy walked in. "Ah, hello! I'm glad you made it!" The boy gives a small awkward nod. The poor thing looked like a deer in headlights. He was so much smaller than Junkyu thought he would be. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Cute</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Alright, class!" Their teacher turns to face them, "This is our new classmate. I believe some of you saw him perform earlier! Great job, by the way," He turns to the boy and gives him a quick thumbs up. "Could you please introduce yourself?" </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Finally!</span>
  </em>
  <span> Junkyu thought. </span>
  <em>
    <span>A name. Just a name is all I need.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>"H-Hello I'm Mashiho. Takata Mashiho." Mashiho bows and smiles at the class, briefly making eye contact with Junkyu. The whole class responds back with an enthusiastic, "Hello!"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Mr. Kwon nods, seemingly satisfied with his introduction. "Alright! Mashiho... where can you sit?" He looks around for an open desk. The only one is in front of Junkyu. His heart rate instantly sped up; Mashiho? Right in front of him? Just like that? "Well, the only open seat is in front of Junkyu right there, is that alright with you? Junkyu raise your hand." </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The look of bewilderment on Junkyu's face would definitely not be the best first impression, so he does his best to look normal as he begins to raise his hand. It's shaking as he slowly raises it up in the air, and Junkyu does his best to not make eye contact with the boy.</span>
  <em>
    
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>"Um.. yeah. That's good." Mashiho thanks the teacher and heads for his seat. Mashiho gives Junkyu a quick smile as he sits down, which Junkyu returns with a face somewhere in between friendly and scared? He could feel his face turning bright red, but by then Mashiho was already sitting down</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I blew it. Why am I so damn awkward? </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>The whole class had started talking again. Same subject, but with slight glances to Mashiho's direction this time. Junkyu could see how uncomfortable it was making the boy in front of him, and he frowned. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Yedam elbowed him slightly and whispered, "Dude! What's up with you and the new guy? Do you guys know each other?" He asked. Junkyu shakes his head no. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Just please get Mr. Kwon to start class. It's too loud in here." Junkyu points to his head and gives a sad smile. Yedam knew about the headaches as well. Just not the full extent of it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Yedam seems surprised but nods right away. "Oh, of course, Junkyu!" He immediately put his hand in the air.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Mr. Kwon! Can we please start class now? I'm dying to know what we have in store for us today!" Yedam smiled brightly. He wasn't entirely lying. Yedam was a fan-favorite among the teachers, he was a great student, and had a lot of pride in the school.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Their teacher silenced the class, "Of course Mr. Bang. Actually, class, we're going to be starting a project today. This will be your end of year project. I know what you're thinking. 'Mr. Kwon!! It's only January!'. It's going to be a LARGE percentage of your final grade," The whole class groaned, even Yedam. These projects were the </span>
  <em>
    <span>worst</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Mr. Kwon smiled evilly at the reaction. “The project is entirely up to you. Be creative, give us something powerful or exciting. Hope that’s not too vague,” he winks playfully to the class. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>However</span>
  </em>
  <span>, because I know you might need a couple of friends to complete this project with, I'm letting you! Be wise with your choices. Go pick your partners! We're doing groups of three." </span>
</p><p>
  <span>"There has to be a catch, right? There's no way he's just letting us choose our groups," Yedam says. Most people had already gotten into their groups, but not everyone had three people. Yedam and Junkyu were one of those groups. They looked around, completely unsure of what to do. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>"If there's anyone that doesn't have a group yet, people come to the front and I’ll find one for you. Groups without a third person please raise your hand,” Mr. Kwon says, quick problem-solving. Both Yedam and Junkyu raise their hand, and watch as more hands start to fly up as well. There were three people up front that didn't have groups, Jihyuk, Minhee and... </span>
  <em>
    <span>Mashiho.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    
  </em>
  <span>"Okay... Jihyuk goes with Dongcheol and Mido, Minhee with Seyeon and Yoona, and Mashiho- No wait. Minhee goes with Yedam and Junkyu. Mashiho Seyeon and Yoona. Alright! Get to work."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Seyeon and Yoona squealed. They were the ones talking about Mashiho earlier. Junkyu looked at the group and sighed, he felt bad for the boy.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Junkyu, you’re staring again. Anything you need to tell me?" Yedam smirks and hits him playfully. Junkyu groans and holds his head in his hands</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Stop pointing it out every time! We can talk later, Ok?" Junkyu replies, looking up for confirmation. Yedam nods, satisfied he’ll get something out of it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Then, a new voice joins the conversation, "So... what are we doing for this project, guys," Minhee nervously laughs. Junkyu jumps back slightly, easily surprised. He hoped Minhee hadn’t heard anything they were talking about.</span>
</p><ol>
<li><span>That would be embarrassing</span></li>
<li><span>He’s not out to anyone except for his friends.</span></li>
</ol><p>
  <span>From what he knows, their school was relatively tolerant, but they weren’t exactly flying pride flags in the hallway. But, there was no doubt that he would face scrutiny for being gay. It was just too much for him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Oh yeah! Sorry, we'll get started on the outline now," Yedam apologizes. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>To say their project was going to be awful was a little harsh, but, it wasn't looking too good.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Junkyu! What are we going to do?! What am </span>
  <em>
    <span>I </span>
  </em>
  <span>going to do? I'm part of the student council and I really can not afford to fail this class, guys! It's a complete disaster!" Yedam is panicking. Clearly. Junkyu and Minhee both share a this-guy-is-completely-overreacting glance.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Dude, it's our first day working on it. We have 5 </span>
  <em>
    <span>months</span>
  </em>
  <span> to perfect everything. So, please, for the sanity of Minhee and I, just stop complaining!" Junkyu answers. His head was </span>
  <em>
    <span>pounding</span>
  </em>
  <span>. So much technical talk and generating ideas and actually </span>
  <em>
    <span>using his brain</span>
  </em>
  <span> did not make him feel good. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>But, it was odd. His migraines were better than usual today. He went a good hour without one, but then they began on the project. It was too odd.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>After Yedam’s mini-meltdown came to a close, Mr. Kwon stood up in from of the class. “Everyone, look up here! We only have 10 minutes left until the end of class, and I need to give  you one more important detail about the project.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Alright! I have one thing to say and for you to decide before we leave today. Some of you must have thought this was too easy. You got to pick groups, the project guidelines were vague and not too strict,” We waited for some sort of class reaction. Everyone kind of just muttered, the verdict unclear.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, here’s the catch you all were waiting for. Every group has to pick one member in the group to get rid of. That person will form a pair with one of the others that got kicked out.  You’ll be working in teams of 2 now! The people that get kicked out of their team have to combine the ideas of your original projects. You'll have the rest of the class to decide and pick your new partners, have fun!"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was like a bomb had dropped in the classroom. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Yeah, this teacher is usually on the harsher side, but this was just awful. How could you do that to a teammate? I feel really bad for Minhee because she'll have to find a different partner but there's no way I'm-</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>"Junkyu, you're out. Sorry dude," Yedam says immediately. Junkyu didn't even have time to make a case for himself. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yedam! Wha- No!” Before he knew it he was being shoved into the crowd of other group rejects. As Yedam walks back over to Minhee, Junkyu shoots daggers at him from his eyes. "Trust me, you'll thank me later," Yedam months and winks. Minhee looks sorry but somewhat relieved. </span>
  <em>
    <span>It’s not her fault</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Junkyu tells himself</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Junkyu stands there awkwardly while people are making their new pairs. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Is there an odd number of people? Am I really going to have to do this whole project alone? I swear to god Yedam has a death wi-</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>"Hey, do you need a partner?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Junkyu hears the voice from behind his and turns around quickly, but stops short.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Mashiho. </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>happy treasure debut day! sorry for short kinda garbage chapter but pls stream boy &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. 003</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>i started (had the idea for) this when yoonbin was still in the lineup for treasure, so that’s why he’s listed in tags/characters. Still more a minor (?) character tho so hopefully that clears that up in case anyone was wondering hjsjsj</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Junkyu was not, by any means, prepared for this. It was </span>
  <em>
    <span>so</span>
  </em>
  <span> soon. How could he possibly talk to him this early? He just found out his name only 30 minutes ago. Junkyu didn’t even know he existed until this morning. There was a whole process he was going to go through before even following him on Instagram, let alone do a </span>
  <em>
    <span>school project</span>
  </em>
  <span> with him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was overreacting. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I’m overreacting</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he thought.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Told you.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Junkyu’s initial five seconds of shock was quickly turned into a small, friendly smile. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hi! I do, actually. Need a partner, that is,” There were no words to describe how nervous he was, but to keep his calm facade, he opted to shuffling his feet awkwardly and praying it wasn’t noticeable.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Mashiho smiled back at him, “Sick, I don’t know anyone in this class so I was worried I’d have to work alone.” The boy chuckled slightly, trying to start some conversation. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>If only Junkyu could pay attention. Mashiho was </span>
  <em>
    <span>ethereal</span>
  </em>
  <span>. When he smiled it sent waves through Junkyu’s heart, his laugh was delicate and easy to his ears, and his </span>
  <em>
    <span>voice</span>
  </em>
  <span>. It was almost as good as when he sang. Everything about him made Junkyu’s heart go crazy.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I barely know him.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>It was true. They had only spoken their first words to each other about 10 seconds ago. And now Mashiho was looking at him weird for taking so long to reply. Oh no.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Junkyu came back to reality and looked back at Mashiho. “Oh yeah! You’re new~. That must be hard…. It’s your first day right?” He looked at the other expectantly and slightly cringed at his own words. Junkyu sounded insane. And pushy. And weird.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yup... Just hoping I have people I know in my other classes,” Mashiho smiled awkwardly but also furrowed his brows like he was slightly confused</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Junkyu looked at the clock, “Well, we only have 2 minutes left, so we can talk about the project next class. Um- I’m gonna go get my stuff, see you tomorrow?” Junkyu didn’t stop to wait for a response, he waved slightly and turned around. He didn’t look back. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was almost tripping over the desks to get there. Yedam and Minhee were talking about their project, but Junkyu had no interest in waiting for Yedam. He was </span>
  <em>
    <span>booking</span>
  </em>
  <span> it out of class when that bell rang. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>One thing that seemed to completely slip his mind was that Mashiho sat right in front of him. It was a little awkward watching him walk back and look at Junkyu like he was crazy, but he didn’t have time to overthink that when he had the 2 whole minutes they spoke to each other to think about.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Then, the bell rang.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Junkyu was gone before Yedam could even think about talking to him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>-</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Junkyu’s whole third-period class was spent overanalyzing every millisecond of every second of those 2 minutes with Mashiho. Also, getting weird glances from the new kid sitting diagonal to him. To be fair, Junkyu couldn’t stop moving, whether it was tapping his pencil, or his shoe, or flipping the pages of his notebook over and over again, he was obstructing anyone around him’s ability to think.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When the bell signaling the end of the third period rang, he was finally released from the hell his brain had subjected him to for those 45 minutes. It was time for lunch, and Junkyu was relieved to finally be able to burden people (his friends) with his </span>
  <em>
    <span>extremely important</span>
  </em>
  <span> problem. Well, that was kind of harsh, but that’s what it was. I don’t think anyone would voluntarily want to hear him complain about his awkward interaction with this boy he just found out existed 3 hours ago.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Heading into the cafeteria, his eyes immediately went to the table he and his friends sat at. Almost everyone was already there except for him, which was pretty odd. Was he walking that slow? He always tried to get to places early for some lack of noise before the storm.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As he walked towards the table, he saw Hyunsuk looking at him weirdly. He knew about Junkyu's earliness as well. But, Junkyu was just as confused at Hyunsuk. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He sat down in between Yedam and Hyunsuk. Yedam, Doyoung, and Jihoon were talking about something that happened in one of their classes, so Junkyu has no escape from Hyunsuk’s questioning.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, are you good? I was the first one here today. I thought maybe you’d passed out or something and ended up in the Nurse’s Office,” Hyunsuk questioned. He was genuinely worried. Of course, Junkyu was thankful for that, but he had no idea what to say.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Honestly, I’m not sure? It’s slightly better today, so I’ll take the pain-free consciousness rather than worrying about why I feel normal,” Junkyu shrugged and smiled at Hyunsuk. The other boy just nodded, not entirely convinced, but he wasn’t going to press further.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Once the other three boys finished their conversation, they finally acknowledged Junkyu’s existence. As well as the empty spot at their table.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, where’s Yoonbin?” Jihoon asked, pointing to the empty spot next to him. “I know he couldn’t make it this morning, but did he never show up to class?” He turned his head to Hyunsuk accusingly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>JIhoon sort of had a thing for Yoonbin. Well, not sort of. He did. Definitely did. It was very obvious, actually. He couldn’t go an hour without saying Yoonbin’s name, even if he tried. And, like most, Yoonbin was entirely oblivious to his best friend’s feelings. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, Jihoon, he showed up for class. I’m sure he’s just running late. It’s not a crime, you know,” Hyunsuk rolled his eyes, not enjoying being targeted for </span>
  <em>
    <span>this</span>
  </em>
  <span> of all things. </span>
  <span></span><br/>
<span><br/>
</span>
  <span>On cue, Yoonbin walked in. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>With people.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>More specifically, the exchange students.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Even more specifically, the last group.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Yoonbin was talking with the rapper from the performance, who Junkyu still hadn’t caught the name of, despite him being in a class with him. Behind them, the other 6 were in lazily formed groups, kind of just floating in between their own conversations. They walked so confidently and so powerfully, much different from the typical new-kid attitude. If you didn’t know they had just arrived today, you’d think they ran the school. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>When Jihoon caught on and realized everyone was looking behind him, he turned around as well. Seeing Yoonbin, the boy put up his hand and waved him over while smiling brightly. Yoonbin sent back a small smile and wave, and turned back to his conversation. He gestured slightly to their table, and they headed over.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Junkyu was losing it. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Please don’t sit here, please don’t sit here, please don’t sit here, please don’t sit here, please don’t sit here. </span>
  </em>
  <span>He cursed Yoonbin in his head for being so damn sociable. He needed the rest of the day to think about the embarrassing interaction with Mashiho, but doing that with the boy </span>
  <em>
    <span>five</span>
  </em>
  <span> feet away was </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> the move. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>When the group made their way over, the whole cafeteria was already looking over and whispering to each other, amazed to see the boys together again. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, guys, sorry I’m late! Was just showing these guys around. Haruto and I had music together earlier, and I offered to give them a quick tour!” Yoonbin pointed to the boy next to him. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Haruto</span>
  </em>
  <span>. “Sorry for taking your job, Yedam, but you guys don’t show them the cool stuff,” He teased. Yedam just rolled his eyes and smiled. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Anyway, guys,” He looked at the group behind him, and moved out of the way to give the others some visibility, “this is Doyoung, Jihoon, Yedam, Hyunsuk,” all four raised their hands as their names were called, “and Junkyu!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Junkyu did the same, trying his best not to be awkward. He looked up at the group and immediately made eye contact with Haruto. He looked... Angry? Attempting to remain unfazed, he looked at the rest of the group. They were all in between smiling or neutral. Less threatening, at least. His hand lowered. The group nodded politely to the introductions, still sort of uneasy and somewhat out of their comfort zone. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, there’s an open table over there, if you guys are ready to go!” Yoonbin smiles and points to one 3 tables away from them. It was the only one left, and if they didn’t act quick, there’s no table for them. Haruto turned to Yoonbin and thanked him quickly before rushing himself and rest over to the table. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>While Yoonbin gets settled in, Junkyu just stares straight ahead. Why was Haruto like that to him? What on Earth did he do? “Hey,” he felt a nudge to his right side. Yedam. Junkyu turns to face him, face scrunched up in confusion. “What was up with that? Did you get into a fight with one of them </span>
  <em>
    <span>already</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Yedam whisper-yells. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Honestly, no clue. I’ve never spoken to him before,” Junkyu shrugs.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Yedam shrugs as well and both boys face back forward, getting involved in the group conversation and finally enjoying their lunches.</span>
</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The end of lunch was approaching, and Junkyu was </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> looking forward to his last 3 classes. He was drained from today, for whatever reason. A nice nap sounded so nice to him right at that moment… </span>
  <em>
    <span>Maybe I’ll just sleep through my classes</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>His pleasant dreams of sleep were harshly interrupted by the bell ringing, to which Junkyu reacted with a groan. Hyunsuk pulled him up from the table, “Come on, let’s go. We have history to attend~!” He ended the sentence in a sing-song voice, which was rather unpleasant and just an addition to Junkyu’s troubles. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Saying goodbye to the group and leaving the cafeteria, the two walk to class together in silence. By now, Hyunsuk had noticed Junkyu wasn’t in the mood for talking, nor walking, but doing the bare minimum was necessary in this case.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Their class was fairly boring, not much excitement, and nothing much fun to do when Junkyu was still overanalyzing every move he had made this morning. It was getting repetitive. And annoying. What wasn’t helping was Mashiho and Haruto being in the class as well. The glances from both of them back to Junkyu and Hyunsuk, mostly Junkyu, were unsettling. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>At a certain point, Hyunsuk started to take notice and looked to Junkyu for some sort of reason, but he didn’t know either. Just another weird thing to add to today's list. So, he decided to just forget about it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>-</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Junkyu’s last classes went by rather slowly, but it was </span>
  <em>
    <span>finally</span>
  </em>
  <span> over. He decided to walk home and give Hyunsuk a break for the afternoon. However, it was mostly just to clear his head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Today was.. Weird? Something just felt off to him. Despite meeting the beautiful boy from the performance, Mashiho didn’t have that effect by the end of the day. Haruto gave weird Junkyu weird vibes. It felt like everything was going the opposite of the way it should’ve. His morning was great, no headache, talked to Mashiho, he felt great. But after the weird interaction at lunch (though it lasted barely a second) with Haruto, his day became boring and tiring, once again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Turning his attention away from his thoughts, Junkyu looked at his surroundings and sighed happily. It was refreshing. Taking in the true outside world always made him feel better. It was one of those things no one knew about him, but when everything in his head became too much for him, he would walk to this secluded spot on the other side of town that not many frequented. Although he lived in a more metropolitan area, they still had little slivers of the natural land, and those were always his favorite.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Junkyu’s plan was to go live out in the country or a cute little cottage in the woods and live off the land. But, sometimes he wanted to live in a big city and have access to all the shops and food and </span>
  <em>
    <span>life</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Both situations included cats, of course. The two sides to his personality clashed so much, and he was always searching for a perfect middle ground, which was almost impossible. He believed that was the cause of his headaches. The constant searching for a middle ground was too much and his brain was sick and tired of it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He had been walking for about 10 minutes and was only a couple blocks away from his home. The music on his phone switched to ‘Palette by IU’. It was one of Junkyu’s favorite songs. Although he was far from being unapologetically himself, he aspired to be what the song was conveying. Just to be at peace and comfortable was his goal.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As he walked down the sidewalk, he quietly sang the song. There was one thing he liked about himself. Personally, he felt like his singing was good. Junkyu had quite an interest in songwriting and singing, but never had enough motivation to pursue it. It was a gift and a struggle. Junkyu wanted people to know he could sing, but he had no interest in the life of a real singer. It was too glamorous and demanding for him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was getting closer to his house and felt more comfortable singing as he was quite familiar with his neighbors and they wouldn’t mind. However, he did feel like someone was staring at him from behind. Junkyu brushed it off as he stepped into the doors of his house. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Junkyu sighed heavily, he was tired. He planned to just go in his room and sleep, but something in the back of his mind wouldn’t let him. Taking off his shoes and taking his backpack off, he headed into the kitchen for a quick snack. ON the way there, he took a quick glance outside the window in the front of his house.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That’s when he saw them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The group of boys from the last performance.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Junkyu still didn’t know what to call them. Mashiho and his friends? Sure. Mashiho and his friends were outside his house. All laughing and looking at Haruto’s phone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He quickly ducked down so they wouldn’t see him, but they already noticed. They ran.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>What the fuck?</span>
  </em>
  
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>sorry the beginning is kinda rushed and the whole this is really ugh if anyone act reading this and can give me constructive criticism it would be much appreciateddd yay ok that's all bye</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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